Louisville Seminary MFT Students Selected for AAMFT Minority Fellowship Program

by
Chris Wooton | Aug 23, 2017

Kelsey Mitchell and Phillip Thompson, both third-year students in Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary’s Master of Arts in Marriage and Family Therapy program, have received fellowships through the American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy Research and Education Foundation. The 2017-2018 fellowship, Now is the Time: Minority Fellowship Program-Youth, is awarded to marriage and family therapy students who demonstrate experience and commitment to serving racially and ethnically diverse populations.

The objectives of the fellowship program are to reduce health disparities and improve behavioral healthcare outcomes by increasing the number of culturally competent master’s-level behavioral health professionals serving children, adolescents, populations in transition to adulthood (aged 16 – 25), and underserved populations, including but not limited to persons who identify as LGBTQ and people with disabilities.

The Minority Fellowship Program is one of the country’s premier mental health workforce development training programs focused on mental health disparities faced by underserved and minority communities.

“I applied for this fellowship because of my growing belief that trauma work is a fundamental necessity of therapeutic care,” said Mitchell. “Underserved people, like the refugee and immigrant populations with whom I hope to work, often carry significant trauma histories and have the least access to mental health services.”

Fellows receive a financial stipend as well as travel support to the American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy annual conference. The conference provides continuing education and cross-collaboration with faculty and other leaders in the field, as well as an opportunity to present their work. Fellows also receive mentorship and leadership development, online training, and access to AAMFT educational resources.

“Serving ethnic minority children, adolescents and people in transition to adulthood is exactly where my passion for ministry through counseling is located,” said Thompson. “Through becoming a fellow, I hope my skills, training and experience will be edified, sharpened and fine-tuned with the single purpose of becoming a better therapist.”